Executive Summary
GCC equity markets ended July on a positive note, supported by strong gains in Dubai markets, driven by strong momentum in real estate sales and positive Q2 2025 earnings for banking stocks. GCC markets have delivered standout returns (9% annualized) over the past five years compared to 3% for MSCI Emerging Markets — all while navigating oil price volatility and global economic uncertainty. Dubai has been the outperformer in the past five-year period, registering a strong annualised return of 24.5%. Abu Dhabi and Kuwait followed with gains of 19.1% and 11.3%, respectively. Saudi Arabia, despite its size (56.5% of the index), lagged slightly at 7.7% CAGR to the index but lagged significantly to UAE. Within sectors, real estate sector emerged as the biggest wealth generator with a 5-year CAGR of 21.3%. Amidst varied performance across markets, sectors, and stocks, picking the right names can unlock serious alpha for active fund managers. Strong fundamentals, blue-chip stability, and attractive dividends make GCC markets worth watching.
